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Dolan deposition made public

Timothy Dolan served in Milwaukee until Feb. 23, 2009 when he was named Archbishop of New York by Pope Benedict XVI

MILWAUKEE -

Cardinal Timothy Dolan said he found a diocese full of "hurting souls" in Milwaukee as the priest sexual abuse scandal exploded in 2002, the same year Dolan was appointed archbishop of Milwaukee.

Dolan's most extensive comments yet on the scandal that has rocked the Catholic Church were revealed Monday in a deposition he gave on Feb. 20, 2013, in New York City, where he is now archbishop. The deposition was part of thousands of pages of documents released in the Archdiocese of Milwaukee's bankruptcy case.

Dolan told the attorney taking the deposition that he believed he had an obligation to his people.

"The souls of some people who had been damaged in a nauseating way when they were young people, they were hurting, their parents were hurting, the parishes were hurting," Dolan said in the deposition.

Dolan said one of his first priorities in Milwaukee was to ask questions and find out if the Milwaukee archdiocese was handling priest sex abuse cases in accordance with the charter approved by the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops in Dallas in 2003.

Dolan said he recognized the serious need to deal with the abuse scandal.

"I would like to think that there was just an elementary sense of justice and right and wrong, that here you have a tragically significant group of people that were viciously hurt by people who dared to say that they were representing the church and the Lord," Dolan said in the deposition.

"So justice, I'd like to think an innate sense of right and wrong and just ordinary human decency would say to me, 'Dolan, you need to do something about this.'"

Dolan said that he wanted to make sure there was no priest in current ministry against whom there were substantiated allegations of abuse.

He also said he wanted to do more than the protocol called for in dealing with minors sexually abused by priests.

"I can remember, for instance, saying, 'I want the word out that any victim that wants to meet with me will find a warm welcome and they can come in. I want the word out that we should do everything possible to make sure that all the literature was available in every church possible,'" Dolan said the deposition.

The Archdiocese of New York on Monday released a statement saying Dolan welcomed the release of the documents.

"One of the principles that guided me during that time was the need for transparency and openness, which is why I not only welcomed the deposition as a chance to go on-the-record with how we responded to the clergy sexual abuse crisis during my years in Milwaukee, but also encouraged that it be released," Dolan said in a statement.

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